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Own was published in 1929. Suffering from severe depression, she drowned herself in 1941.

Wordsworth, William (1770–1850) poet

Born in Cumberland, Wordsworth attended St. John’s College, CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY, and on a visit to France in 1791 he was moved by the experience of the revolution there. He had a child with a Frenchwoman but returned to ENGLAND and was stranded by the outbreak of war. Setting up housekeeping with his sister, his poems developed themes from the turmoil and hardship of the times. His Lyrical Ballads appeared in 1798. A few years later he married Mary Hutchinson and settled in his native Lake District in northern England. His long autobiographical poem The Prelude was composed over many years and not published until 1851. Meanwhile his innumerable individual and collected works made him a leading figure of the romantic movement (see

ROMANTICISM).

Workers’ Educational Association

Founded in 1903, this body aimed at providing workers with advanced education. Its founder, Albert Mansbridge, felt that university extension courses (begun in 1878) had become the province of the middle class. He found tutors from the UNIVERSITIES and worker students who initially wanted to study politics and economic and social issues. The movement went on to a wider curriculum, and it can be seen as one of the forerunners of the OPEN UNIVERSITY.

World War I

CAUSES

Decades of tension in Europe were reflected in rival military alliances—on one side imperial Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy in the Triple Alliance; countered by a Dual Alliance of France and Russia, joined by GREAT BRITAIN through diplomatic ENTENTEs. The main con-

cerns of Britain were the threat of German naval power and, behind that, her perceived ambition to dominate the continent and reach eastward into Asia. In short, Germany posed a very real threat to the BRITISH EMPIRE. In 1914 a crisis in the Balkans arose when the Austrian archduke was assassinated by a Serbian nationalist. There had been a number of crises in the area, and this time Austria insisted on punishing the guilty party. Germany supported her, and Russia vowed to protect the Serbs. Thus armies were mobilized in the East, but German military plans called for a first strike against France before launching the much larger and longer operation against Russia. Thus, in August 1914 Germany attacked through neutral Belgium. That invasion provided a pretext for British entry into the war, for while she had no open military agreement with France, she was a guarantor of Belgian neutrality. But if this was the pretext, the much deeper cause of imperial power rivalry clearly lay beneath the surface.

CAMPAIGNS

The collision of German and French armies, plus

a small BRITISH EXPEDITIONARY FORCE, set the

stage for a “western front”—a line of battle from the Swiss border to the North Sea—which dominated the military effort of both sides for the next four years. After early engagements, both armies dug in, fortified trenches, and employed heavy artillery, machine guns, and barbed wire against the other’s assaults. Fearsome casualties mounted on both sides. At Verdun between February and June 1916, a million men died. The British launched an offensive soon after on the SOMME, where close to 60,000 were killed in the first day and a total of 400,000 by November. These battles did little to move the front line, and they seemed to mire the combatants in more and more deadly entanglement.

The second major front of the war was in Eastern Europe, where large armies moved over great distances, with Germany conquering Poland, allying with Turkey and Bulgaria, and eventually defeating the demoralized armies of

Russia (1917). In secondary campaigns, the British and French tried to outflank their enemies and form a link with Russia by invading the Dardanelles and taking Constantinople (1915). The GALLIPOLI campaign failed, as the NAVY could not force the straits, and an amphibious assault on poorly chosen beaches of the Gallipoli peninsula resulted in only more casualties and a withdrawal of the invaders. Armies in the Middle East and Mesopotamia were more successful in defeating Turkish opposition, Britain and France taking Syria and Palestine.

The other critical theater of operations was naval warfare. Unexpectedly, the high-seas fleets of Britain and Germany met only once, in the indecisive Battle of JUTLAND in 1916. However, submarine warfare by Germany against British shipping was a serious threat, nearly cutting off supplies to the islands. Submarine warfare was a point of friction with the United States and other neutrals, but in 1917 Germany chose to drop all restrictions on U-boat operations, calculating that British defeat would come long before American aid could reach the battlefront. They were very nearly right; however, the United States did declare war, and its troops reached the western front in 1918. Meanwhile, Britain survived the crisis, using convoys to reduce her shipping losses. On the western front, the last German offensive in 1918 was defeated, and the allied armies advanced in the late summer, bringing an armistice in November 1918.

POLITICS

The war was profoundly important in British domestic and foreign politics. Twice there were crises that resulted in coalitions. In May 1915 there was a “shell scandal,” based on reports that not enough ammunition was being produced and shipped to the troops on the western front. This generated enough pressure to cause Herbert ASQUITH to form a coalition with the CONSERVA- TIVE PARTY. In 1916, after the unsatisfactory campaigns of that year, another coup resulted in the Liberal David LLOYD GEORGE replacing Asquith at the head of a national coalition dominated by Conservatives. These moves irreparably split the

LIBERAL PARTY and provided a prolonged period without normal political activity (1914–1922).

In foreign affairs, the war brought the United States into closer contact through borrowing and military aid, but not into full diplomatic alliance, as the American Senate chose to boycott the LEAGUE OF NATIONS. Elsewhere, Russia was transformed by the 1917 revolutions there, new successor states rose in central Europe, and France alone remained as a major if untrusting ally.

CONSEQUENCES

PARLIAMENT was bypassed during long periods, as a small but powerful War CABINET made most decisions. There was consolidation of control in the name of the war effort through the DEFENCE OF THE REALM ACT (1914) and the formation of ministries to control munitions, food, shipping, and even information (i.e., propaganda). The resort to CONSCRIPTION, the vast employment of women in replacement positions, and the surge in TRADE UNION membership transformed the socioeconomic landscape. Postwar reconstruction programs promised education, housing, and unemployment insurance, but these were not all forthcoming. Thus the deaths and wounds and losses of property were not seen as worthwhile. Although the peace settlement and the treaties signed in Paris were supposed to close this chapter and open a new era of international cooperation, they became instead engulfed in economic, political, and ideological struggles, all too soon resulting in another global conflict.

World War II

CAUSES

From a European viewpoint, the Second World War flowed directly from the first, as German anger over the “diktat” of the Treaty of VER- SAILLES (1919) fed the flames of nationalist resentment. This was cleverly manipulated by Adolf Hitler, leading to the invasion of Poland in 1939. But the war’s origins were more diverse, as Japan forged an empire in Asia, invading China in 1937 and then pursuing a policy of expansion into Southeast Asia and finally into the islands of

the Pacific. The British public was much more aware of and interested in Germany’s aggressive steps. Hitler’s reoccupation of the Rhineland, his rearmament of Germany, his demands for German national goals, and his annexation of Austria, also reclaiming parts of Czechoslovakia and of Poland, were all met at first by a policy of APPEASEMENT—accepting his demands and gaining time for rearmament. By 1939 this policy ceased and an alliance was made with Poland, but it was immediately sabotaged by the NaziSoviet nonaggression pact in 1939, Joseph Stalin’s more brutal and effective brand of appeasement. He and Hitler agreed to divide Poland between them, and thus Germany invaded in September 1939, with little fear of resistance. GREAT BRITAIN was bound, as was France, to declare war in fulfillment of the guarantees they had given to Poland.

CAMPAIGNS

In the European theater, the war had several distinct phases: a period of British resistance and defensive campaigns (1939–41), a period of allied defensive actions (1941–43), and a period of offensive campaigns recapturing German gains and ultimately destroying the enemy’s war machine. In the first phase, Britain did not engage German forces until April 1940, by way of an abortive invasion of North Norway. Ironically, the failure of this campaign, designed by Winston CHURCHILL, had to be defended by

Neville CHAMBERLAIN in the HOUSE OF COMMONS.

When Chamberlain’s support dwindled, Churchill became the new PRIME MINISTER in May 1940. As he did, France was invaded and fell to Germany in six weeks. Britain thus was fighting alone and would have no ally for over a year. In this period she had to defend against the BLITZ and a possible German invasion as well as survive the submarine warfare that nearly cut her lifelines. At the same time, British forces in North AFRICA were threatened, as were the imperial outposts in other parts of the world.

In 1941 three events transformed Britain’s strategic position. First, in March U.S. president Franklin Roosevelt inaugurated the LEND-LEASE

program, making vital supplies available to Britain. Second, Hitler invaded the Soviet Union in June 1941, a move that created an alliance between Churchill and Stalin. This was an awkward and testy relationship, but the two were forced to join against their mutual enemy, and within a few years this would prove to be an unbeatable alliance. Finally, in December 1941 the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor brought the United States into the war. Since Hitler had also declared war on the Americans in December, President Roosevelt agreed with Churchill to focus first on defeating Germany. The allied effort first aimed at clearing German and Italian forces from North Africa, and then an invasion of Sicily (1943) signaled the new offensive phase. In 1944 the invasion of Normandy began the long and bloody reconquest of France. Meanwhile Stalin’s armies had been able to stop Hitler and go on the offensive after lifting the siege of Stalingrad in December 1942.

As the campaigns of 1944 and 1945 proceeded to victory in May 1945 in Europe, the United States, Britain, Australia, and New Zealand joined in attacking Japan’s island conquests, winning back Southeast Asia while the nationalist Chinese under Chiang Kai-shek mobilized mainland China to evict their conquerors. To forestall an invasion of the Japanese home islands, the Americans dropped two ATOM BOMBs, on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, forcing a surrender in September 1945.

POLITICS

British politics were profoundly affected by the war. Another domestic coalition (first formed in 1931) was abruptly ended by a smashing LABOUR PARTY victory in 1945, evicting the war hero Churchill. Abroad, Britain seemed to be part of a victorious triumvirate and was engaged in leading the formation of a postwar United Nations, but at the same time her empire was critically weakened and would never recover. Churchill was an effective war leader, but not as a party politician. He had changed sides in his career and was distrusted by many, but he found a way to strike the right chord as a popular

leader in war. He irritated and antagonized many subordinates and often tried to impose his strategic ideas on unwilling soldiers and sailors. Nevertheless he inspired tremendous loyalty. But when the war’s end was near, an election was necessary. There had been none since 1935, and the memories of that decade were compounded by the sacrifices of the war years. Churchill’s campaign tried to portray Labour as being dangerously authoritarian. However, Clement ATTLEE had been his deputy PRIME MIN- ISTER and it was impossible to paint him as a man to be feared. Labour won 397 seats in PAR- LIAMENT and began to honor the commitments to postwar reconstruction, whatever their cost.

In foreign affairs, the war had greatly altered the picture. The United States was a partner, indeed the senior partner by 1945, whereas other European states were devastated by the war and unable to provide significant support. The Soviet Union, once an ally, soon appeared to have ambitions to expand its power in Western Europe, and its longtime dedication to communist revolution made relations tense. The one major improvement over 1919 was that in 1945 a new international body, the United Nations, was established. Given the experience of the LEAGUE OF NATIONS, improvements were made, and there was fuller participation than previously. This was both a plus and a minus. For Britain it was now important to play a part in a large effective international body; at the same time, her imperial role was reduced, even though it took 20 years for that to be generally accepted by political leaders and the public.

CONSEQUENCES

The war’s 350,000 military and civilian deaths were about a third of the toll of WORLD WAR I, but the damage was felt in different and possibly more severe terms. Physically, the civilian population suffered far more, with increased air warfare and bombing of cities. The drain on British resources was proportionally greater, even though there was a vastly greater amount of American aid. There was, however, much

less uncertainty about war aims, given the demonstrable brutality of the German concentration camps and Japanese mistreatment of war prisoners.

Wren, Sir Christopher (1632–1723) architect

The son of a rector in Wiltshire, Wren was educated at Westminster School and Wadham College, OXFORD UNIVERSITY. In his early career he was an astronomer and mathematician, and he had a part in the founding of the ROYAL SOCIETY. He turned to architecture in 1663, and his first major project was the design of the Sheldonian Theatre in Oxford. He was the principal architect for the rebuilding of London after the Great FIRE OF LONDON (1666). Other projects included the Royal Observatory, Greenwich (1675); HAMPTON

COURT PALACE (1689–1702); and ST. PAUL’S CATHE-

DRAL (1705–11).

writ

A royal command, later an order to hear a case before the royal courts. Writs were issued from the king’s chancery and drawn up according to a formulary—the register of writs. They were subject to change, to be verified in court proceedings. Hence the writ, and its alterations (“forms of action” in the COMMON LAW courts) tell the story of the evolution of the LAW. There were only about 60 forms in the 13th century, but three centuries later the number was over 2,500. By the 19th century the form was standardized and eventually eliminated.

Wyatt, Sir Thomas (1521–1554) rebel

Wyatt led a rebellion of about 3,000 men from Kent, against the announced plan of MARY I to marry Philip of Spain. He attempting to reach LONDON but was repulsed. Arrested and tried for TREASON, he was executed on Tower Hill. The revolt led to the execution of Lady Jane GREY.

Wycliffe, John (1330–1384) theologian, reformer

Born in Yorkshire, Wycliffe studied at Merton College, OXFORD UNIVERSITY, and later became master of Balliol College at the university. As the protégé of John of Gaunt, he served on a number of diplomatic missions. He wrote works expressing radical opinions, such as De dominio divino and De dominio civil (ca. 1376). These works brought a denunciation from Rome. Wycliffe worked on a translation of the BIBLE and wrote On the Eucharist (1379), which stamped him as a heretic. His followers were known as LOLLARDS, and while Wycliffe was able to live out his life peacefully, the Lollards were later hunted down and persecuted.

Wyvill, Christopher (1740–1822) reformer

Wyvill was a Yorkshire landowner and clergyman who initiated the Association Movement, an effort to form county associations to petition for limits on government spending and patronage. These objectives were thought to require an increase in the number of county members of PARLIAMENT—those elected on the broadest FRANCHISE, the 40-shilling freeholders. The movement spread quickly during the 1780s, but it was swept away in the turmoil generated by the revolution in France.

Yalta Conference

In February 1945 Winston CHURCHILL, Franklin Roosevelt, and Joseph Stalin met in the Crimea to consider postwar plans. They discussed disarming Germany and reparations and agreed on a border between Poland and the Soviet Union. Stalin committed to joining the United Nations and entering the war against Japan three months after victory in Europe. Critics saw the conference as yielding too much authority to Stalin in central and eastern Europe, but Soviet armies had already taken care of that.

year books

Records of arguments in the COMMON LAW courts, kept from the 13th to the 16th centuries. These were a basis for procedural points as well as an invaluable historical source. Year books were succeeded by law reports, which noted the issues, arguments of counsel, and opinions of judges.

Yeats, William Butler (1865–1939) poet

Yeats was an Irish nationalist who founded literary groups and a national theatre in the 1890s. His early work was part of the CELTIC revival of the 19th century (Celtic Twilight, 1893; The Secret Rose, 1897), though his mature work found a more distinctive voice (Poems Written in Discouragement, 1913; The Wild Swans at Coole, 1917). His nationalism was tempered with an appreciation of the Anglo-Irish contribution. He was a mem-

ber of the SEANAD ÉIRANN (1922–28), and he received the Nobel Prize in literature in 1923.

yeoman

Not a precise term, “yeoman” applied mainly to freeholders below the rank of gentlemen but above the level of a tenant. A yeoman was usually someone who held some land in his own right, although the terminology varied by region and over time. In the “New Domesday” (1877), John Bateman classified “greater yeomen” as owners of 300–1,000 acres, “lesser yeomen” as those with 100–300 acres. The term “yeomanry” refers to volunteer cavalry formed as a MILITIA on a COUNTY basis. Used for the period of the 19th century, the yeomanry was absorbed in the Territorial Army after 1907.

York, house of

Edmund, first duke (1342–1402), the fifth son of EDWARD III, fought in the campaigns of the HUNDRED YEARS’ WAR and was a supporter of HENRY IV when that king overthrew RICHARD II.

Edward, second duke (1373–1415), son of Edmund, was a supporter of Richard II and involved in various plots, but he served Henry IV and died in the Battle of AGINCOURT.

Richard Plantagenet, third duke (1411–60), nephew of Edward and son of the earl of Cambridge, was heir presumptive to the throne, 1447–53. Lord protector during the illness of HENRY VI, he was the leader of the Yorkists at the outset of the Wars of the ROSES,